Lift & Drag Coefficients

Compute CL, CD, and L/D from force, reference area, and dynamic pressure.

visual calculatorAerodynamics & External Flow

Read the flow shape before trusting the number.

This page turns a CFD setup into regime, scale, and dominant-effect cues. Adjust the calculator below and compare the moving graphic with the computed result.

input scale

model

check

aerodynamicsliftdragcoefficient

formula

KaTeX rendered

\begin{aligned}\text{C\_L = L / (0.5 rho U\^{}2 A)}\\[0.35em]\text{C\_D = D / (0.5 rho U\^{}2 A)}\end{aligned}

ASCII source

C_L = L / (0.5 rho U^2 A), C_D = D / (0.5 rho U^2 A)

rho (kg/m^3)U (m/s)reference area A (m^2)lift force L (N)drag force D (N)

q = 1/2 rho U^2 (Pa)

980.0000

C_L

1.0204

C_D

0.1020

L/D

10.0000

Use the same reference area convention as the experiment or solver report before comparing coefficients.

aerodynamics lift drag coefficient